Mangaluru : M Chandrashekhar took charge as the Mangaluru City Police Commissioner on Sunday.

The State government had ordered the transfer of S Murugan, who was serving as the city police commissioner, on Friday.

Chandrashekhar is an aerospace engineer from IIT, Kharagpur and a native of Nellore district in Andhra Pradesh. He was serving as Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) of Bengaluru City Police before his current posting. He is a 1998 batch IPS officer, originally allotted to Himachal Pradesh cadre and was absorbed into the Karnataka cadre in 2013.

He has served as an ASP in Shimla and also served as superintendent of police in Bilaspur and Mandi districts. He served as SP (Internal Security Division) for three months, before serving as DCP (East division) of Bengaluru City Police from 2009 to 2012. Later, he was posted to Karnataka State Fire and Emergency Services from 2012 to 2014.

Speaking after taking charge, Chandrashekhar said he is serving in Mangaluru for the first time.

“I will need some time to get to know the city better and the issues related to local policing,” he added.

“Maintaining law and order, ensuring the welfare of police personnel and people-friendly policing will be my top priority. The cooperation between police and public are essential to maintain law and order,” he said.

He said, “Priority will be given for the use of technology in the Police Department.

Through social media like Facebook, efforts will be made to be in close contact with the public. Strict action will be initiated against the trouble mongers who misuse social media.”